Did you know that a charity exists today that was designed to develop and preserve the activity we all know and love? Yes, hang gliding and paragliding have their very own public charity whose mission is to develop and preserve non-powered foot-launched soaring flight activities. The charity is called the United States Hang Gliding Foundation (USHGF).
How come you haven’t heard of this charity before? Let me
briefly explain the history.
In the mid 80’s, when USHGA was still in California, some
regional directors got together and decided that there ought to be a way to
raise funds to support the U.S. World Team Competitors with donations made on a
tax deductible basis. This organization needed to be separate from the
Association because at the time it was believed that the USHGA was ineligible
for tax-exempt status. A separate public charity is not a new concept to support
an activity like ours. The Soaring Society of America and the US Olympic
Committee each have separate public foundations to attract contributions and
grants. As a result of this need, the Foundation was formed in 1987 primarily to
help support the US Hang Gliding World Teams. Unfortunately, not much happened with the Foundation for the
next 13 years. Following its
formation, a series of events occurred that resulted in the Foundation being
essentially neglected for most of the 1990’s. Why this happened and the exact
details are hard to pinpoint and really not important. In late 2000, some
members of the USHGA BOD resurrected the Foundation, but with a somewhat
different mission. In addition to
supporting the HG and PG World Teams, the Foundation will now also support Site
Preservation efforts. A group of Trustees were appointed to develop the
Foundation, and to put it on a sound business footing.
Our initial efforts were primarily administrative.
We worked with accountants, attorneys and the IRS to complete the
necessary requirements to ensure our 501(c)3 public charity status. Next, the
bylaws were revised to include as a purpose the Preservation of Open Spaces
(site preservation). Going forward, the USHGF will fulfill its mission with a
focus on Site Preservation, Education- (like soaring related scientific
research), and by supporting a U.S. presence in International Competition.
The Trustees are focused on establishing the Foundation as
a viable and separate entity from the Association. This separation is necessary
so that we can comply with the requirements imposed on us as a public charity.
While separate, however, the USHGF bylaws do provide that four of the seven
trustees are from the USHGA Board (President, Vice President and two others) and
the remaining 3 selected by the board from the membership or outside the USHGA
community, a common practice in many successful foundations. (See side bar for
list of current directors)
While there is a great deal of overlap in the general
purposes of the Association and the Foundation, the primary difference is in the
type of organization. The Association is a member-supported organization. Their
funds are raised primarily from their members in the form of dues, and for this
fee the members receive membership services including insurance protection, the
pilot proficiency program, a magazine related to the activity, and other member
benefiting services. Dues are not a tax-deductible expense.
The Foundation, on the other hand, has no members, collects
no dues, and provides no direct services. It is a publicly supported charity
that raises funds through solicitations and grants to further its exempt
purposes, and all donations are tax-deductible. It is easy to contribute, and
like any other public charity, donations are tax deductible. Better yet, the
Foundation is eligible for matching donations from your employer. It’s as
simple as filling out a form. We will provide the required documentation
indicating our tax-exempt status. The value of your donation can be increased
even more if you donate to one of our World Teams at the time of your USHGA
membership renewal. USHGA currently is matching these contributions.
Even though both organizations endeavor to support hang gliding related activities, the IRS looks at them very differently and there are a number of tests that the Foundation must meet in order to maintain its exempt status.
One of the most important tests is that no economic benefit
may inure to a donor. In other words there can be no quid-pro-quo. Donations to
the Foundation may be earmarked for a specific purpose, however, the purpose
cannot be so specific that a benefit would inure to an individual. For example,
donations are accepted in the name of the “Women’s World Team”, or the
“Kocsis Site Preservation Fund”, amongst others, but we can’t accept funds
that are earmarked for a specific competition, competitor or site. Note that if
you want your donation to be earmarked exclusively for Site Preservation, or
exclusively for the World Teams, that is perfectly acceptable.
Over the next few months you will begin seeing more about the Foundation and how we are helping soaring activities through our efforts to preserve open spaces utilized for soaring, as well as our support for the U.S. World Team Competitors. In the meantime, in order to fulfill our mission long-term, we will obviously need assistance from you, the soaring public. If you would like to learn more about the Foundation, or if you would like to donate your time or help financially, please give any one of the Trustee’s a call. We would be glad to discuss the Foundation; the public charity created to benefit and perpetuate Hang and Para Gliding throughout the United States.